I don't think I've ever heard as many complaints about the wintery weather as I have this past month. It seems that last year's brutal and long winter somehow came back to haunt us. Oh well. The hope of a shorter, less intense winter went out the window with the record for the coldest February ever!

The weather definitely made running difficult for those living in Ontario. If it wasn't a fresh dumping of snow on seemingly never shoveled routes, it was one extreme cold alert after another. After several exhausting 5-10K runs through what felt like sand, I knew I wouldn't be able to complete a 20K+ long run in these conditions. I decided to check out the local indoor track, which, in addition to offering a glorious heated and snow-free environment, it was the largest indoor track in the city and close to home. I was pleasantly surprised when I tried my first run there, and signed up for a monthly pass till the end of the season. I've been going once a week for speed work and on other occasions to get in some warm laps on the commute to work. It was a good find that truly helped me get in my workouts this month.

So how did I do in my first goal setting month?

Workouts: 4 run, 2 cross-train, 1 rest. With the exception of taking an extra rest day when I was really tired, I completed my workouts as planned.

Stretch everyday. Since my weekday runs are part of my commute to work, if I arrive and need to get started on something right away, I sometimes hit the shower without having time to stretch. That said, I have been better about stretching this past month than ever.

Plank everyday. I started well, then fell off the plank wagon mid-month when things got busy.

64oz+ water. This one is fairly easy for me.

Positive calories on MFP's weekly average. Three out of four weeks. Lately I am finding it hard to get the scale to budge, and theorize that my runs aren't burning quite the same number of calories as My Fitness Pal estimates. Given so many ups and downs in calories in and out, it's bound to be a little more challenging to find the balance. I have been doing a okay job at maintaining, but at the high end of my goal weight. I have to laugh when people hear about how much I have been running lately and say I must be able to eat anything. Yes, well, I WANT to eat everything. But calories still add up. On an interesting note, I have been finding the more I run the more I crave better fuel and find that anything remotely unhealthy makes me feel gross.

Get up from my desk more often. Need to work at this... (((pause))) okay, there's one.

Continue fuel tests. I tried several new things on my long runs this month, including fig newtons, rice mixed with sweetened dried berries, pretzels, dates, chia drinks, chia snack gels and different breakfasts. The best find was the Mamma Chia squeeze fruit squeeze packets from Costco. They are tasty and more closely resemble real food on the ingredient list than many traditional fuels. Pretzels and dates and were good additions that fit into pockets. The fig newtons left an icky taste in my mouth. And while the rice was yummy--it was obviously difficult to eat! I am slowly perfecting my chia fresca recipe. As a test I went back to my I my usual hearty oatmeal breakfast and fueled with a traditional electrolyte drink and chews for one long run. I struggled incredibly and had to cut my run short. These tests have been very valuable and will help me for Around the Bay. While it makes for a lot to carry, the time I may lose eating and carrying them I make up for with more energy in my run.